What's under the hood? Drugs and a stolen gun, deputies say

Friday

Silver Springs man arrested after a deputy found his stopped pickup and asked if he could help

SILVER SPRINGS — Sheriff’s deputies recovered a stolen gun and arrested a Silver Springs man on charges that he was hiding drugs under a vehicle’s hood.

Deputy James Burgess noticed an older model Chevy pickup stopped in the 10400 block of East State Road 40 and pulled off the side of the road to see if the occupants, a man and woman, needed assistance.

Burgess said the driver, Danny Taylor, 31, got out of the vehicle, opened the hood and appeared to be fixing something, according to an arrest report. Taylor asked the deputy if he could follow him to Silver Springs. The deputy said he would have to check to see if Taylor had a valid driver’s license.

Taylor told the deputy he did not have his license, the report said. Checking his name and date of birth, the deputy noticed Taylor’s license had been suspended indefinitely in October 2017.

A K-9 deputy was called and the dog detected drugs. Searching the vehicle, deputies found fentanyl, heroin and a hypodermic needle in tin foil under the hood, the report said. Continuing searching under the hood, deputies also found a loaded Keltec 9mm handgun that had been reported stolen to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office last month.

Taylor told deputies the drugs belong to him, but didn't know anything about the firearm, the report said. He said he knew his license was suspended, but blamed friends for giving him bad advice. He said the friends, whose licenses are also suspended, told him to stop paying his fines and his license would be reinstated.

Taylor was charged with drug possession and driving on a suspended license on Wednesday. He remained at the Marion County Jail on Friday with bail set at $6,500. His next court date is set for 9 a.m. Dec. 26.

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